The Rising of the Empire
by Phoenixica24
Summary: What happens after Morgana? A new adventure for Dave, Balthazar, Becky, all our favorite characters, and an OC! Sadly, I don't own any of them except the OC.
1. Prologue: After Morgana

Prologue: After Morgana:

New York City dominated the skyline, the setting sun highlighting the stainless steel skyscrapers into a gloriously enticing view.

Dave couldn't hide the worry growing in his chest-he had, after all, simply abandoned Balthazar and Veronica after he had, well, resurrected Balthazar, and he had no idea if they had just left or what. He couldn't bear the thought that, after everything they had been through, and despite the fact his training was by no means complete, that Balthazar could just up and leave.

Becky wrapped her arms around his waist. "They'll be waiting for us." she murmured in his ear, somehow knowing exactly what he was wondering. "Don't worry, Balthazar would never abandon you, Dave. He thinks of you more as a son than an apprentice." Dave was startled by this revelation, to say the least. Thinking about it, he realized he had come to look up to Balthazar as more of a father figure than a master or even a mentor.

"I hope they stayed." he muttered.

"Of course! And who else would help them make their way in this time?" Becky asked, now knowing everything, seeing as Dave had flown her to France and back, talking the whole time. They were now completely on the same page with one another.

"Balthazar won't need much help. He's lived similarly to the way we do now before." Dave reminded her.

"The last ten years still count! They would not have just left, Dave!" Becky exclaimed.

"That's what we did to them." Dave whispered, fear closing in around his heart.

Becky fell silent after that.

Dave put the eagle back and sprinted straight to his lab, heart pounding, afraid of the emptiness from before. He'd gotten used to having people around, he realized. A bad idea for when they left!

Balthazar finally pulled back from Veronica and rested his forehead against hers.

"What will we do now?" she whispered.

"Wait for Dave to get back." he replied. "Then we will work something out."

He led her back to Dave's lab, where they waited. And talked. Eventually, Balthazar got Veronica all caught up, and Dave still wasn't back. They sat in silence, both trying to think of something to say.

"Well, this sure was easier back then." Balthazar muttered, doubts nagging at his mind. Had Veronica spent too much time with Morgana in the Grimhold? Had their love faded over the years?

Dave almost fell as he rushed headlong down the stairs into his lab. There they were, Balthazar and Veronica, fast asleep at other ends of the lab. Huh. He would have thought they would be together. Was it some old privacy thing?

"WAKE UP!" he yelled excitedly. "Balthazar, guess what? SHE SAID YES!"

"What...?" the older sorcerer moaned. Veronica had sat bolt upright with a gasp. She stalked huffily off into some corner to mutter about 'lack of respect'.

"Balthazar, honey," she called alluringly.

"One moment!" he called back. He turned to Dave. "What?"

"SHE SAID YES!"

"We heard you the first time!" Veronica cried. She sounded upset.

"Becky said yes...?" Balthazar guessed.

"WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!" Dave cried.

"Really!" Veronica stormed back in and dragged Balthazar away.

"We really need to get you someplace else to stay," Dave began. "There are plenty of much nicer places..."

"I've been thinking about reclaiming my store..." Balthazar murmured absently.

"Balthazar!" Veronica called. "What is this?"

"Coming!" he replied wearily. Turning to Dave, he asked, "I'm not this needy, am I?"

"No...but you weren't in the Grimhold the whole time. She missed a lot." Dave pointed out.

"She can't take jokes, she can't move on and accept what happened! Sometimes I think she actually _misses_ Morgana!" Balthazar cried in frustration.

"Maybe you should end this before you go mad," Dave suggested carefully.

"I waited a thousand years for her...but did she wait a thousand years for me?" Balthazar wondered. He shook his head. "Enough romance problems. Love is a distraction." he told himself firmly. Dave smirked. "Let's train."

"What is this?" Dave asked a few days later, after yet another practice session that was cut short by Veronica whining about something or other. That girl may have been considered tough for a woman in her time, but now she was considered worse than the whiniest, neediest infant!

"What is what?" Balthazar snarled grumpily as he staggered back into the room.

"This." Dave held up a very old book.

"That is a book of old Atlantian legends." Balthazar said, looking puzzled. "I thought that vanished years ago."

"Apparently not." Dave opened the book. "It's not even in any language I've ever heard of!"

"That's because it's in Atlantian-a language that died a millennium before I was born." Balthazar retorted, some of his old humor returning.

"Balthazar!" came the inevitable call from Veronica.

Balthazar just sighed. I have a translation somewhere. I'll bring it back-stay right there!" he called over his shoulder.

He was back two hours later, carrying a slightly newer book. He and Dave sat down and opened it.

Two weeks later, they finally finished it.

"That's it?" Dave asked. "What happened after that?"

"No..." Balthazar muttered. "There was one last prophecy-about 2020." he rummaged through his satchel.

Dave pulled a loose thread from the binding of the Atlantian copy, and yelped when two sheets of paper came with it. He held them up, and waved the English one in Balthazar's face. "Would you happen to be looking for this?" he asked with a smirk on his face.

Balthazar snatched it and laid it in the light, bending low over it.

_The world will die,_

_grime and mortals will be crowned,_

_and murder their mother._

_The last of our kind,_

_the Phoenix Warrior,_

_the lost Princess,_

_the last Queen,_

_of the Gods,_

_the Krystal,_

_will be born the year 1996,_

_the summer month,_

_the holy day,_

_she will rise up_

_with two sorcerers_

_against those that seek to crown mortals,_

_but for those who seek only_

_to return the crown to its rightful heir._

_In love she will be,_

_who will defy her_

_for age,_

_age she does not lack;_

_but rather he;_

_and they shall fall,_

_unless able to overcome the lies._

_If failure becomes hers;_

_the world will die,_

_and be no more._

_The fish will float,_

_the birds will fall,_

_the people will cry_

_out their pain,_

_only to find it is not theirs,_

_but the tears of the Mother herself._

_But if victory becomes hers;_

_Peace will rule the land,_

_green will ripple o'er the mountains,_

_the fish shall swim,_

_the birds shall fly,_

_the people shall smile and be happy once more,_

_and the world shall be restored._

_Praise the Clan of the Phoenix,_

_for they shall save or doom us all,_

_in the end._

They sat in silence.

"That's cheerful." Dave commented at last.

"I don't understand..." Balthazar muttered. "Born 1996, in the summer month...June 1996, the holy day, what was their holy number again, Dave?"

"Twenty-four." Dave replied, mystified.

"Born June 24, 1996. Yet it says "the lost Princess". Unless she was born-That's it!" he yelped.

"What's it?" Dave asked, alarmed now.

"The fall of Atlantis!"

"What?"

Balthazar sighed exasperatedly. "Surely you did some background research?"

"No? I thought this was the only manuscript-"

"The first puzzle was solved two hundred years ago!" Balthazar exclaimed. "The sorcerers' records of scientific spells that were cast to reveal past events tell of the fall of Atlantis-however, the magic of the empire prevented the spells from going back any further."

"Okay...So what happened?" Dave asked, frustrated.

"You remember how the Atlantians mortal enemy was getting bolder?" when Dave nodded, Balthazar went on. "The Molkariat attacked and destroyed the capital city, the one that had the palace, temples, and their life source. In order to save her people, the last Queen, Kida, gave her only child, her newborn daughter, to a strong magician or sorcerer as we know them as, and told him to place her in the future. She then sank the empire using the power of the Krystal after giving herself up to it." Seeing Dave's puzzled look, he explained, "That's what the book meant by Krysalys, their deity, their gods, the Krystal, required a live human of pure blood-usually royalty-to...join it. They would get drawn up into it and it would feed on them-their power, life, and body, to protect the empire and do what was necessary. Kida gave herself up so that the empire could be sunk-in the Pacific, I believe. Very few Atlantians were left outside, but the sorcerer who sent the child into the future was one of them. He was the one who left records. He was also the only one to take a mortal mate."

"A what?" Dave asked.

"An early form of marriage." Balthazar explained.

"Oh. So there could be a sorcerer who's descended from a powerful Atlantian?"

"There is. He was Merlin's apprentice. You know him." Balthazar said, his eyes dancing with silent laughter.

"HORVATH?" Dave shrieked.

Balthazar burst out laughing. "NO! Wow, David, you really sounded like a girl there! No, it's not Maxim."

Dave gaped at him. "You? Does Veronica know?"

"No. And don't tell her. I wasn't going to tell anyone, I just wanted to be myself and see where I ended up. I wanted to be judged for me, not my ancestry. You have already done that, and I trust you as I would my own son. Therefore, I have no qualms about telling you." Balthazar explained.

"Oh. Wow." Dave whispered, staring at him.

"I'm still Balthazar, and I'm still your master." Balthazar teased him lightly, hoping to lighten the mood. He didn't like being gaped at like he was some sort of god. It made him uncomfortable.

"Come on, let's go to bed."


	2. Chapter 2: Sorcerers in Hawai'i

**A/N: Thanks to my beta Azzie for going over this for me so quickly! Not sure if this is worth continuing at this point, so I'll drop it until someone either reviews or PMs me asking me to continue. Thanks! **

Chapter One: Sorcerers in Hawa'i

Dave ran through the streets of Maui, frantically trying to catch up to his master. "Balthazar!" he cried. Why was he acting like this? Sure, he had changed since they had defeated Morgana. Veronica hadn't been able to handle the changes in the world, and eventually had lost her mind. She had passed away some time ago, and Balthazar had wanted to move far away from New York after that, so here they were. Becky had wanted nothing to do with Dave after what had happened to Veronica.

Dave finally caught up to Balthazar and saw him staring across the beach at the surfers. At one surfer in particular. A red-haired young woman glided across the waves easily, flipping her board up as she seemed to leap for the sky, tilting her head back and flying. Dave knew the look on his mentor's face and decided to tease him.

"Love is a distraction-" was all he got out before Balthazar stormed off. Actually, it was just the word love, and only the first two letters, but he liked to think his master had heard more of it.

That night, they went out to eat in some little restaurant near the beach. Later, they relaxed on the sand, near a group of tan, fit college students. While Balthazar was eyeing the girl still out in the waves, Dave saw an old friend. AJ had been the new kid in school in fourth grade. He was the only one who had believed Dave, honestly believed him. "AJ!" he called out. His friend turned.

"Dave?" AJ asked incredulously. "Dave!" he cried. The two friends hugged excitedly. "Seriously, dude, I thought you were gone! Here, c'mere and meet my old friends. Shay! Get Jessi in off that board of hers!" he called.

"I see you found your girls, then." Dave teased.

"Yup, I got my sisters back." AJ said. "Who's your friend?"

"Balthazar!" Dave called.

His mentor looked up. "This is AJ, my old friend that I told you about?"

"Oh, hello, AJ, is it?" Balthazar said distractedly.

"Yeah, Balthazar? Cool name. That's Shayla, and she's going to get Jessica off the waves. This is Kelly, that's Jordan, those two are Zack and Abriya, they're together, that's Natalie coming back, and Mike right behind her. This here is Dominique. I'm not sure where everyone else went."

"Big group." Dave commented.

"Yeah, we've all known each other since at least age eight, though. Except Jordan and Erin. Most of us went to kindergarten together, Kel and Jordan are the newest. Kel moved in in third grade, Jordan everyone but me met in sixth, I think. We've got a group of condos nearby, on our beach. Jess is working on becoming a linguist-she's damn good at it, too-Erin's writing, 'Nique's acting-our own little drama queen-she's amazing on stage, though, Kel's an artist who refuses to admit she's amazing at it, Jordan's working on getting a job as an actor-nothing yet, though. I'm trying to get Shay and Jess to bring back our old group, 'Nique's excited, Jess is neutral, Shay's not willing to work. What about you?"

Dave talked with his friend for a few minutes as Balthazar searched the waves. The red-haired woman was gone. He couldn't help the sudden heaviness in his heart, until he noticed her sneaking up behind AJ. She saw him looking and smirked, putting a finger to her lips. His heart skipped right as she jumped, knocking AJ face first into the sand.

"You talk to much, 'Jay," she teased, her voice ringing musically. She grinned at them. "I'm Jess."

"Dave, and this is Balthazar." Dave said, laughing at Balthazar's completely love-struck face.

"Aloha." she said. "Anyone ready to go eat?" she asked the group at large. She went and pulled her cell phone out of her bag. "Erin's got us a table at the usual place, and I'm starving!"

Dave was opening his mouth to bid his friend goodbye when Jess looked over. "Coming?" she asked them.

"Sure." Balthazar answered quickly. She smirked at him.

"I was starting to think you didn't talk." The sorcerer actually blushed at that. Dave raised an eyebrow at his master.

"Shut up." Balthazar muttered. Dave smirked, glad that his ever-eloquent master was back to normal. Although maybe not quite as eloquent for the time being.

They strolled down the street, talking and laughing. At first, Balthazar was content to listen to Jess's voice, until she turned to him and started a round of two million questions that the others quickly joined with enthusiasm. Dave was involved in his own interrogation with some others.

Soon they arrived at a quaint little restaurant near a calm beach. They all crowded in and Jess went up to speak to a waitress. "Aloha, Robin, party of..." She turned and counted quickly. "Thirteen, I think?"

The waitress checked her chart as a voice called out, "AJ! Jess! Over here!"

"Erin!" Jess called, bounding over. It took a few minutes to get everyone seated, and Balthazar found himself inexplicably next to Jess. He looked over to Dave and noticed that he was smiling a big Cheshire Cat smile at him; Balthazar groaned and turned away from his match-making apprentice, facing Jess. They chattered pleasantly until their waitress arrived.

"Aloha, my name is Amanda and I will be taking care of you tonight. Would you like to start with something to drink?"

The orders ran around the table. Balthazar was shocked to hear Dave actually order something with real alcohol in it. Dave caught his master's eye and shrugged. Balthazar realized Jess was ordering and he was next-he hadn't decided!

"Strawberry lemonade, please," Jess was saying.

"C'mon Jess, shouldn't you drink something on your golden birthday?" Natalie called.

"That's tomorrow, Nat." Jess said with a smirk. "And you haven't even had anything to drink yet!" Nat stuck her tongue out and leaned on Mike's shoulder, her meaning clear-_I'm the one with a man_. Jess turned away, disgusted at how low her friend was willing to go.

"And for you?" the waitress asked Balthazar.

"Earth to Balthazar!" Shay teased.

"What? Oh, sorry, just a water is fine." Balthazar said absently.

"That's worse than Jess!" Nat teased.

"Are you sure?" Jess asked, looking concerned.

"Sorry, I..."

"Wasn't paying attention?" Kel teased.

"It's okay." Jordan broke in. "Just say something quick-you can always get something else later." He nodded at the waitress.

"Strawberry lemonade." Balthazar heard himself saying. Jess raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment. The group went off into the land of gossip, getting Dave all caught up. Jess wasn't talking a lot, she would just make a quick, witty comment every few minutes, never much. She tossed her head as the waitress came back with their drinks, her strawberry-blond hair swirling around her, a cloud of the colors of the sunset come down to earth, her eyes glinting like amber at sundown. Balthazar gasped, suddenly unable to remember how to breathe. He could have sworn she heard, for she smirked slightly, flicking her gaze lightly in his direction, before ducking her head to hide her smile and blush. 'Nique reached over and smacked her lightly, smirking playfully.

"Be nice!" Erin scolded. Then they all laughed and returned to their conversation.

"Hark who's talking! Face it, you're being extremely rude and leaving people out!" Jess retorted. Everyone turned to look at Balthazar.

"It's okay, really..." he began, but Jess cut in.

"No, it's not. You can ask us anything, you know. Look at Dave, he joined in! You two are clearly close, and he's one of us. Therefore, you're one of us. So you might as well get over it and start talking-just be warned: we're all slightly insane!" Everyone at the table cracked up laughing at that, and several voices chorused agreement. Dave caught Balthazar's gaze and shrugged, grinning.

"Might as well accept the fact-we're a part of the insanity now!" he glanced meaningfully at Jess, leaning over to whisper in his master's ear "Talk to her! She's clearly interested!" he winked and went back to chatting with the others.

"So, where did you all come from? How do you know each other?" Balthazar asked, trying to sound nonchalant and unconcerned, and failing miserably.

"We're all from just outside of Chicago. Near Aurora. 'Nique and I met in a dance class when we were three, 'Lyn was there, too. She's not here, she...left." Jess began. "My mom and Shay's mom met when we were two. My mom and I were outside in our front yard, and Shay and her mom were on a walk. We met up a lot after that, and grew up as sisters. After my mom died, a few months after we met, Shay and her family kind of took me in. She's been there since my dad remarried and my little brother was born. AJ's parents were friends with Shay's parents, we met at Shay's third birthday party. After that, it was always the three of us."

"The Triplets!" Nat called.

"Yeah, that's what we were called up until Shay and AJ moved. We were nine. Nat, Mike, Zack, and Bri were in our kindergarten class, we've known them since we were five. We weren't the closest friends with them, but we grew up together. Kel moved in in second grade, I think, Shay and AJ moved in fourth, and we met Jordan towards the end of sixth grade. We didn't meet Erin till ninth, really, though. We were best friends all through high school. I pulled this together—ever since a family trip to the Islands, I've wanted to move here for college. I got some friends and found Shay and AJ, and we all made it over. We all chipped in for the costs, and so far, it's worked. AJ met Dave after he moved, but none of the rest of us know him, I mean, AJ's talked about him, but we'd never met him before now. What about you? How did you meet Dave?" Balthazar looked uncomfortable.

"Well..."


End file.
